Two local athletes are proving Bradford has what it takes to compete at the national level.
Dan Murray, 69, won silver in men’s five-pin bowling and Monique Shah, 41, won silver for snowshoeing in the 400-metre relay and bronze for both 200- and 400-metre snowshoeing at the Special Olympics Canada Winter Games held in Calgary Alta., from Feb. 27 to March 2.
Both are long-time Bradford residents with Shah living in town for 17 years and Murray for more than 20.
Murray said it felt good and he’s “proud” of winning his medal, because it’s a “big accomplishment,” but acknowledged playing several back-to-back games made for some long days.
Shah also felt proud of her accomplishment, especially since she was competing against some athletes as young as 20 years old.
“It means that I’m still competitive,” she said.
For her, the hardest part was trying to stay warm and making sure she didn’t fall, as a Chinook resulted in melting snow and unfavourable conditions that proved treacherous for other athletes.
While this was Murray’s first medal at the Canada games, he also won gold last summer at the regional Hometown games in Barrie, and he plans to keep competing with another tournament coming up on April 14 at the city's Bowlerama.
He encourages others to come out and join the special Olympians, and Kylee Clarke-Minogue, one of two community coordinators and chairs of the Special Olympics Ontario Bradford chapter, noted that when the Bradford chapter started in 2018 there were just eight athletes, but they’ve since grown to 13.
For Shah, the medals are part of a growing collection, including two golds for both 100- and 200-metre runs at the Special Olympic World Summer Games in Athens Greece in 2011. She has also previously won medals for bowling and bocce ball as well as more medals for snowshoeing at the Special Olympics Canada Winter Games in Thunder Bay in 2020.
From there, she was selected to go to Russia for the world games in 2020, but those were cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“I’m going to keep competing,” Shah said, adding that she’s hoping to represent Canada at the Special Olympics World Winter Games in Turin, Italy in March 2025.
The Calgary games served partially as a qualifier and based on their performances and results earlier this year, Clarke-Minogue thinks both Shah and Murray could be selected.
Shah is also hoping to qualify later this year for both track and bocce ball at the Special Olympics Canada Summer Games set to be held in Medicine Hat, Alta., in August 2026.
When asked what advice she has for other potential Special Olympians, Shah said the her experience has taught her to “believe in yourself and you can do anything you put your mind to.”
Both Murray and Shah regularly bowl as part of the Bradford Rollers and are “exceptional athletes,” according to Patrick Minogue, one of the community coordinators and chairs of the Bradford chapter.
While the team regularly bowls from October to mid May, they are also preparing to transition to bocce ball, which they regularly play on Thursday evenings at the Lion’s Park from June to September.
The local chapter is currently looking for both athletes and volunteers. Anyone interested can find more information by visiting bradford.specialolympicsontario.ca, their Facebook page or emailing [email protected].
